Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1887-02-27
EXTRA SESSION CHANCES
APPROPRIATION BILLS THE
SOURCE OF DANGER.


Senator Beck Confident that the Time
Before Adjournment is Now too short
to Get Them Out of the Way-1he
President Empowered to Appoint tho
Railroad Commissioners During the
Recess.
WASHINGTON, Feb. 26.-Despite the
wish of the President and of the members
OF both Houses of Congress to avoid the
necessity for called session OF the two
houses or a special session of the Senate,
the opinion was entertained this morning
that matters in respect to the appropria-
tion bills are rapidly drifting into posi-
tion, If indeed they have not already
reached it, which makes called session
inevitable. Mr.. Allison says that in all
his services in both houses he has never
known such state of back wardness in
regard to the appropriation bills, and for
this condition OF things he declares that
neither the Senate nor its Committee on
Appropriations is in any way responsible.
Mr.. BECK OF THE SAME MIND.
Mr.. Beck, a member OF the Senate Ap-
preparations Committee, declares mis- be-
lief that it will be impossible, during the
remaining days Of this session, to finish
the appropriation bills. The matter of
appointments and combinations, while
probably not sufficient of itself to bring
about a special session of the Senate,
contributes to the influences which may
produce called session. The opinions
respecting the power of the President to
appoint the Interstate Com merce Com
missoners during the recess of the Sem
ate are widely variant.
APPOINTMENTS AND CONTRIBUTIONS.
Mr.. Edmunds, Mr.. Pugh. Mr.. Harris
and other Senators of prominence declare,
without qualification, that the President
has no shadow OF constitutional or legal
right to fill an Office newly created when
the Senate Is not in session to give its
advice and consent, and that his power
In the matter is limited to filing vacan-
cies temporarily which may happen
during a recess. 1t is held that should
he do so they could not qualify, draw
their salaries or legally perform any
duties.
THE PRESIDENTS POWER.
1t is said, on good authority, that the
President does not consider that there is
anything in the law which requires him
to appoint the Interstate Commerce CON-
missIoners before the adjournment OF
Congress, or which makes it necessary
that the Senate should be specially called
together in case he HH3s it mex pedient to
make the appointments until after the
adjournment. There have been several
opinions on the question as to the Presi-
dents authority to fill a newly created
| Office during the recess of Con-
gress. Attorney General Stansberrv
made an elaborate review of this
question Aug. 80, 1866. and held in sub
stance that the President has full and In
dependent power TO fill vacancies In re-
cess OF the Senate without any limitation
as to the time when they first occurred. |
Two years later-Aug. II, 1854 Jtorney |
General Evarts, in an opinion on the sub |
ject. adopted Attorney General Stan |
berry's construction, and said that where |
an office Is created by a law taking effect |
during session OF the Senate and no |
nomination IS made thereto the office can |
be filed by executive appointment during |
recess of the Senate.
ANOTHER AUTHORITY.
Attorney General Williams gave an |
opinion on the same question April "a. |
1873. He reviewed the opinions of At |
torney Generals Stansberry and Evarts, |
aud fully approved their construction of |
the law, adding that he considered them /
as settling the question. Another opin- |
ion on this subject was rendered by At |
torney General Devlns June IS, 1880. He |
reviewed the question at length in all It's |
aspects and concurreG in the views ex-
pressed by his predecessors in office. He |
said, moreover, that the law as con-
strued by them had been |
the construction in the practice |
which had been uniformly adopted since |
the time of President Monroe. Attorney |
General Garland, 1T is said, has also |
adopted the views of Attorney Generals |
Stansberry, Evarts, Williams and De
vens. Senator Sherman is among those
who hold that interstate commerce COM
missioners may be appointed by the
President after the adjournment of the
Senate. and may hold Office until Con-
gress in regular session shall act upon
their nominations the same as if a vacan-
cy were created by death or resignation.